As far as disappointing financial results go, this set from ethanol company Maple Energy (MPLE) stand out. Its state-of-the-art ethanol operation in Peru started up late March 2012 and ramped-up production through the year, but a $31m (£20m) write-down of exploratory costs incurred on a shale gas well years ago plunged the ethanol producer deep into the red. House broker Cenkos Securities had been looking for a handsome pre-tax profit of $23m.
What's more, net debt has risen sharply after the company ran into teething problems during the ramp-up that required additional capital expenditure. Servicing its debt was much more expensive, too, and Maple is walking a financial tightrope having almost maxed out its numerous debt facilities with various parties. It has already tapped the equity markets once this year via a £9m private placement in February.
The good news is that, following a string of operational difficulties last year, Maple has got off to a decent enough start in 2013. The company harvested 225,000 net tonnes of sugarcane in the first quarter, which at an annualised rate equates to around 900,000 tonnes a year. That's up over a quarter on last year's equivalent when the firm harvested 521,000 tonnes from April to December.
MAPLE ENERGY (MPLE) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 45p | MARKET VALUE: | £73.8m | |
| TOUCH: | 43-47p | 12-MONTH HIGH/LOW: | 79p | 45p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 70¢* | NET DEBT†: | 125% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.3 | -5.17 | -7.90 | nil |
| 2009 | 64.7 | -12.4 | -26.1 | nil |
| 2010 | 71.2 | -0.45 | 0.11 | nil |
| 2011 | 87.0 | 10.4 | 8.05 | nil |
| 2012 | 118 | -43.0 | -25.3 | nil |
| % change | +36 | - | - | - |
*Includes intangible assets of $67m, or 41¢ a share †Includes restricted cash of $2.7m £1=$1.55 | ||||
